Naomi Osaka and Alexander Zverev fell at the first hurdle but it hardly comes as a surprise.

Zverev has had a nightmare of a season so far with only a title in Geneva and early exits at the Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami and most recently in Stuttgart and Halle. He also suffered stunning losses to Struff, Ferrer, Munar, Garin and Jarry. Today he lost to Jiri Vesely in 4 sets.

As for 2-time Grand Slam champion Osaka, she admitted prior to the Championships that she was relieved not to be number one anymore, as she had not been prepared for the pressure that being number one brought. Beaten today by Yulia Putintseva 6-7 2-6, she became the first top-two seed to lose in the women’s first round since Martina Hingis in 2001.

Dominika Cibulkova defeats Ana Konjuh 6-4 3-6 6-0

Back to Roland Garros today and I’m back on court 17 to watch a match that looks exciting … on paper.
A former junior number one, Ana Konjuh was touted as a future top ten player. Aged 18, she won her first WTA tournament in Nottingham last year. As for Dominika Cibulkova, semifinalist here in 2009, she had a good clay-court season, with a final in Madrid.

Lots of unforced errors from both players. Not a really enjoyable match.

Cibulkova can’t stay still for a second. For her gruntings for first point on are really annoying.

I spent a few days in Paris last week for the BNP Paribas Masters, the ninth and final Masters 1000 event of the season. Novak Djokovic captured the title, dispatching Andy Murray 6-2 6-4 in the final. Enjoy my pictures and recaps of day 1 to day 4.

I’m in Paris until Thursday for the BNP Paribas Masters (aka Bercy Masters). There’s usually plenty at stake in the ninth and final Masters 1000 event of the year: the race for world number one ranking or the battle for a place in the season-ending London finals. But this year, the eight players who have secured their spots are already known: Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Roger Federer, Stan Wawrinka, Rafael Nadal, Tomas Berdych, David Ferrer and Kei Nishikori.
I have however big expectations for this tournament:
– I’m eager to see the “new” Bercy arena: the POPB that hosts the Bercy Masters has been completely renovated (read more about the modernization project)
– I didn’t manage to get tickets for the Davis Cup final, so I would like to see the clash between Andy Murray and David Goffin in the third round. I also would like to see Rafa Nadal and Kei Nishikori.

My first impressions about the renovated arena: everything looks so … grey: the court, the seats, the hallway. It’s quite depressing! The food is expensive, as usual: €8 for a pizza slice, €4 for a 50cl Coke bottle! If you plan to attend the Bercy Masters next year, bring your own food. There’s also a bakery just in front of the arena where you can buy good sandwiches. On the plus side: free wifi is now available in the arena, and the seats are much more comfortable!